1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a service supply apparatus, a service receiving apparatus and a broadcast system composed of the service supply apparatus and the service receiving apparatus, and more particularly to a service supply apparatus for supplying a service of a broadcasting program and service addition information indicating attributes of the broadcasting program, a service receiving apparatus of a viewer for receiving the service of the broadcasting program and the service addition information and a broadcast system for transmitting a broadcasting program required by a viewer from the service supply apparatus to the service receiving apparatus of the viewer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Multi-media information such as audio information and visual information has been recently supplied to a user (or a viewer) with the advancement of a communication technique and a data processing technique. Also, because a large capacity of recording medium has been developed, a user can use a broadcast system to transmit a large volume of broadcasting program data by using a broadcast communicating unit, the broadcasting program data is received and stored by a terminal unit on a user's side and the broadcasting program data is reproduced and viewed by the user.
2.1. Previously Proposed Art
As one conventional technique of the broadcast system already disclosed, broadcasting program data including both content data of a broadcasting program expected to be viewed by a viewer and control data used to control the broadcasting program is broadcasted from a broadcasting center and is received by a receiving terminal unit of the viewer, the broadcasting program data is recorded in a recording medium, the recorded broadcasting program data is read out when the user desires to view the broadcasting program, and the broadcasting program is viewed by the viewer.
Also, another conventional broadcast system, in which a processing program used to process a broadcasting program is transmitted with the broadcasting program to a receiving terminal unit of the viewer, is known. In this broadcast system, data of the broadcasting program and data of the processing program are distributed in a plurality of objects, and the data are transmitted in an object unit. Therefore, display contents of the broadcasting program can be widely changed because the processing program is transmitted with the broadcasting program and is executed.
2.2. Problems to be Solved by the Invention
However, in the conventional broadcast system, though the broadcasting program is transmitted, the display contents of the broadcasting program are changed by executing the processing program and the viewer can entertain varied contents of the broadcasting program, main contents of the broadcasting program (or a main portion of the broadcasting program) are only reproduced and displayed in cases where the contents of the broadcasting program are reproduced and displayed on the user's receiving terminal unit. Therefore, in cases where a service supplier desires to supply a broadcasting program or a service relating to the broadcasting program to one or more viewers on condition that the broadcasting program suits their tastes or personal attributes, the service supplier is required to specify in advance the viewers to which the service supplier really desires to supply the broadcasting program or the service. Otherwise, the service supplier has no choice but to supply the broadcasting program or the service to a plurality of unspecified users regardless of tastes of the unspecified users. In other words, unless the service supplier knows tastes of a plurality of users, the service supplier cannot supply the broadcasting program or the service to the users on condition that the broadcasting program suits their tastes. Also, in cases where each of a plurality of users is specified in advance by a service supplier, the service supplier is required to get allowance for supplying a broadcasting program or a service relating to the broadcasting program from each of the users each time the broadcasting program or the service is supplied to the users. Therefore, there is a drawback that a transmission volume of data of the broadcasting program or the service is increased as the number of users is increased.